New laws in 2017 for California drivers

Changes in using your cell phone, child seats, legalizing motorcycle lane splitting are some of the changes facing California drivers in 2017.

Electronic Wireless Device Usage Motorists will soon be prohibited from holding and operating a handheld wireless telephone or electronic communications devices while driving, unless it mounted on the vehicle’s windshield, or affixed to a dashboard or center console in a way that does not hinder the individual’s view of the road, according to the release.

Child Safety Seats This law extends a requirement that children under 2 years old must sit in an appropriate rear-facing child passenger restraint system, unless he or she is more than 40 pounds, or is taller than 40 inches, according to Assembly Bill 53.The bill, which was signed in 2015, expanded the existing law, which stated that children under the age of 8 must be placed in an appropriate passenger restraint system while in a moving vehicle.

Motorcycle Lane Splitting California became the first state in the U.S. to formally legalize lane splitting when Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 51 in August, according to the Los Angeles Times.The law, which goes into effect Jan. 1, defines the practice as a motorist driving a two-wheeled motorcycle between rows of stopped or moving vehicles. It also authorizes the California Highway Patrol to develop educational guidelines on lane splitting to help ensure the safety of all motorists.